SWD Update Week of 6/17 – Continued trap captures and increasing populations

Spotted wing drosophila (SWD) trap captures continue to be reported in many locations throughout NY state over the past few weeks. In many places, trap counts continue to be low. In some locations populations have escalated quickly.

First captures were reported:

• The week of 5/27 in Albany, Dutchess and Suffolk Counties.
• The week of 6/3 in Clinton, Columbia, Schuyler, Washington, and Ontario Counties.
• The week of 6/10 in Delaware, Essex, Niagara, Tioga, Tompkins, Wayne
• The week of 6/17 in Chenango

As mentioned our first update for 2024 summarizing SWD monitoring, first captures are somewhat earlier than has been reported in the past. This is especially true compared to last season (2023), in which first trap captures for many locations were recorded nearly two weeks later than average. This highlights the need for site and season specific monitoring efforts to initiate management programs at the appropriate time.

Cumulative SWD Trap Captures at Monitoring Locations in NY State

Under the correct conditions, populations of SWD can increase rapidly. First and sustained trap capture has been reported in the majority of monitoring locations at this time, although in some locations SWD has not yet been detected in traps. In most places, numbers are low and slowly increasing. But in some locations populations have increased dramatically. In other locations, populations have declined, likely suppressed by insecticide applications. The following graph shows at sites across NY State from the week of May 27 to June 17, showing increase in the overall number of insects captured per site.

Weekly trap captures by locations

Thank you to all of our collaborators for servicing SWD traps across the state!